WHO'S PACKING YOUR PARACHUTE?

"Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil.

Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody.

If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."

Romans 12:16-18

Charles Plumb flew 74 successful combat missions over North Vietnam. On his 75th mission, with only five days before he was to return home, Plumb was shot down, captured, tortured, and imprisoned in an 8 foot x 8 foot cell for the next six years.

Eventually, Charles Plumb made it home. One day, he was sitting in a restaurant in Kansas City. “A man about two tables away kept looking at me,” he explains. “I didn't recognize him. But, a few minutes into our meal he stood up and walked over to my table, looked down at me, pointed his finger in my face and said, ‘You're Captain Plumb.’ I looked up and I said, ‘Yes sir, I'm Captain Plumb.’"

The man then said, "You flew jet fighters in Vietnam. You were on the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk. You were shot down. You parachuted into enemy hands and spent six years as a prisoner of war." Charles Plumb was stunned. He asked the stranger how he knew so much about him.

The man simply replied, "Because, I packed your parachute."

Mr. Plumb says, “I was speechless. I staggered to my feet and held out a very grateful hand of thanks.” He then told his new friend, “I must tell you I've said a lot of prayers of thanks for your nimble fingers, but I never thought I'd have the opportunity to express my gratitude in person."

Charles Plumb was overjoyed, but he didn’t get much sleep that night. “I kept thinking about that man. I kept wondering what he might have looked like in a Navy uniform - a Dixie cup hat, a bib in the back and bell bottom trousers. I wondered how many times I might have passed him on board the Kitty Hawk. I wondered how many times I might have seen him and not even said ‘good morning’, ‘how are you?’ or anything because, you see, I was a fighter pilot and he was just a sailor. How many hours did he spend on that long wooden table in the bowels of that ship weaving the shrouds and folding the silks of those chutes? I could have cared less...until one day my parachute came along and he packed it for me.”

Right now, this very moment, ask yourself this one simple question, “Who’s packing my parachute?”

This one question gives you an incredible opportunity to see the unseen, to know the unknown and to appreciate the overlooked. But, you must be honest with yourself. Who are the special – and maybe not so special - people in your life who provide you with strength, support, encouragement – or just a smile, the brakes fixed on your car, your bags packed at the grocery store – who make your days better and brighter?

The Lord sends a lot of people to pack our parachutes everyday. We may not know exactly who they are, but it could be anyone. That’s why we must appreciate and show God’s love to everyone we meet.

This Week’s Prayer

Dear Lord, You have saved me every way a person can be saved. You have saved my life, my soul and my place in heaven. I know you send people to save me every day. Thank you for them. I ask that you bless their lives and their work. Please allow me to show them the appreciation and gratitude they deserve. And show me the many opportunities I will have to pack the parachutes of those around me. Amen.

THANK YOU

I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness

and will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.

Psalms 7:17

Born in 1890, Eddie Rickenbacker, was an American pioneer. He became famous as an ace pilot in World War I, receiving the Medal of Honor for his service and heroics. He was also a race car driver and automotive designer, a government consultant in military matters and a pioneer in air transportation. During his lifetime, Rickenbacker worked with many influential civilian and military leaders. They counted on his keen insight into technology and his vision for the future of transportation that proved remarkably accurate well after his death in 1973

He also never went a week without feeding shrimp to seagulls at the old pier close to his home.

Why would this remarkable man take time each week to treat the seagulls to such a delight? Because Eeddie Rickenbacker was a grateful man. It began in 1942 when Rickenbacker and the crew of his B-17 ran out of fuel and crashed in the Pacific Ocean while trying to deliver a message to General Douglas MacArthur. After eight days in a lifeboat the crews’ rations ran out. They had no food and were quickly starving to death. Suffering from exposure, dehydration and exhaustion, Rickenbacker fell asleep just after finishing an afternoon devotional and prayer service. It was a Friday afternoon and Eddie expected this to be his final rest.

From out of nowhere, a seagull miraculously landed on his head. The other men immediately snatched the bird and ate its meat. The bird’s intestines, to dangerous to eat, were used for fish bait. Soon, they were devouring the fish they caught and were able to survive until rescue came a few days later.

Their lives were saved by a seagull that was mysteriously hundreds of miles from land.

So every Friday afternoon until the day he died, Rickenbacker would slowly walk to the end of the ocean pier near his home. And there he would stand and wait. Soon, the squawking of seagulls would surround him. He would feed shrimp to the seagulls for a half-hour or so - until his bucket was empty.

Yet each week, even after the shrimp was all gone, his friends would linger with him, sensing something more than just food. They perched on his hat. They flew along side him. They stood next to him.

That is when Eddie Rickenbacker would quietly say, “Thank you.”

If you’re drifting in a lifeboat right now, wondering whether or not you are going to survive, I have good news for you …You Will! The Lord loves you and will stop at nothing to swoop down and save you no matter what. It may be a call from a friend, it may be a new job, or it may be some seagull – or Turkey – to eat! No matter how He does it, He will save you. And no matter how He does it, now is the time to say, “Thank You!”

This Week’s Prayer

Father, Thank You for all you have done for me. Thank You for giving me Your Son, Jesus. Thank You for always saving me again and again. Let me never forget that I must be grateful every moment of my life, for I know that gratitude is the mother of all virtues. Amen.

Begin At The Beginning

The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.  Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.

Ecclesiasties 7:8-9

How do your control your actions, your anger, your patience – especially with those you love?

Recently, I heard about a wonderful couple. This extraordinary man and woman had been married for more than 60 years. Through the years they shared everything. They had talked about everything. They kept no secrets from each other . . . except one. It seems the little old woman had a shoe box in the top of her closet that she had warned her husband never to open or ask her about.

For all of those years he never thought about the box. But, then one day the old woman got very sick and the doctor said she would not recover. In trying to settle their affairs, her old husband slowly took down the shoe box and brought it to his wife's bedside.

She agreed that it was time he should know what was in the box.  When he opened it, he found two crocheted dolls and a stack of money totaling $95,000. He was astonished. “When we were to be married,” she explained, “my grandmother told me the secret of a happy marriage was to never argue. She told me that if I ever got angry with you, I should just keep quiet and crochet a little doll.”

The old man was so moved. Tears ran down his face. There were only two precious dolls in the box! She had only been angry with him two times in all those years of living and loving. He almost burst with happiness. 

“Darling,” he said, “that explains the dolls, but what about all this money? Where did it come from?”

“Oh, that,” she said, “that's the money I made from selling all the other dolls.”

How do we control our actions, our anger, our patience – especially with those we love? How do we create a life worthy of the Lord, worthy of our family? It begins at the beginning.

It begins with you and what resides deep within you. Just remember this simple wisdom:

• Watch your thoughts; they become words.
• Watch your words; they become actions.
• Watch your actions; they become habits.
• Watch your habits; they become character.
• Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

Yes, there is a direct relationship between you thoughts and your destiny. The old woman knew this every time she made one of her dolls. She controlled her anger and her pride and allowed patience to win the day.

But, don’t go it alone. No! Because if the Lord Jesus does not reside within you, then you will not carry the strength necessary to expel all the negativity, self-centeredness, and fear that worms its way into your daily life.

Invite the Lord into your heart and mind and then your thoughts and emotions will forever gravitate toward everything that is good. Your destiny will be shaped by a loving God who wants you to have a glorious life with Him.

This Week’s Prayer

Dear Lord, Remind me to take a deep breath whenever the stress becomes too much, whenever my anger tries to take control, and whenever I am running out of energy to make it through the day. Let me breath You in; Your Holy Spirit, You love, Your promise of a better tomorrow. Help me to control my thoughts and emotions. Remind me that I am in control of them and they do not control me. Come into my heart today and everyday as I make my way to Your Kingdom. Amen.